Clothing with fan for cooling

ABSTRACT

An article of clothing, namely, a shirt in which at least one cooling apparatus but preferably a system of cooling apparatuses having miniature fans are attached so as to cool the person of the wearer. The shirt contains a plurality of strategic openings wherein the cooling apparatuses can be removably attached. The cooling apparatuses are connected to a centralized power source and controller, which serves to actuate the fans. The cooling apparatuses can be detached from the shirt for cleaning or replacement.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an article of clothing having a coolingapparatus, which operates to relieve the discomfort of heat and cool theperson of the wearer.

Clothing is generally made to be functionally suitable for specificweather conditions, as for rain or cold. In cold weather, for instance,it is advisable to wear layers of clothing made of suitably warm fabric,such as a light cashmere sweater or a heavy wool coat, in order toretain body heat and insulate one's body from the cold. The colder theweather, the more layers can be added to keep warm. Conversely, in hotweather, it is desirable to ventilate the body and relieve body heat.However, the functionality of clothing—as determined by the type,texture, weight and color of fabric—to relieve heat is limited and, incontrast to adding layers for cold weather, layers cannot be continuallyremoved to adjust to increasing heat in hot weather.

As a result, it is a common problem for people who attend activities,indoor or outdoor, where the temperature is excessively hot, to suffergreat discomfort from the effects of heat, which diminishes the pleasureof the activity. For the thousands of people who attend summertimesporting events, whether it is a baseball game or a NASCAR race, copingwith the heat is a significant problem. Oftentimes, people bring manualfans or small handheld electric fans to obtain relief from theoppressiveness of the heat, but it becomes inconvenient to have tocontinuously operate a fan while attending to a sporting event. Thisproblem is all the more acute when a person is not simply a spectator,but rather is an active participant in a recreational activity, such ashiking or biking. It is impractical for a hiker or bicyclist to operatea fan while engaged in the activity. Consequently, for those whoparticipate in any type of warm weather recreational activities, theheat can be an inhibiting and even debilitating factor.

For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for clothing that caneffectively reduce the discomfort of heat and cool the wearer in hotweather conditions.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to an article of clothing with atleast one attached cooling apparatus that is capable of reducing thediscomfort of heat to the person of the wearer. An article of clothinghaving the features of the present invention comprises at least oneopening formed therein, with a cooling apparatus capable of fittingwithin the opening. The cooling apparatus is comprised of a fan enclosedwithin an encasement, and having a means for being secured to theopening of the clothing article. The cooling apparatus is connected to apower source and a controller.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and advantages of this invention are better understood withregard to the following drawings, description, and claims. The drawingsconsist of the following:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an article of clothing embodyingfeatures of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an article of clothing having anopening.

FIG. 2(a) is a detail front view of an opening as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3 is a front view of an article of clothing embodying features ofthis invention.

FIG. 3(a) is a detail front view of a cooling apparatus as shown in FIG.3.

FIG. 3(b) is a sectional view of a cooling apparatus attached to anopening.

FIG. 4 is a side view of an article of clothing embodying features ofthis invention.

FIG. 5(a) is a front view of an opening with lining having fasteners.

FIG. 5(b) is a front view of a cooling apparatus with lining havingfasteners.

FIG. 5(c) is a side view of a cooling apparatus attached to an openingby fasteners.

FIG. 6(a) is a sectional view of a cooling apparatus having arectangular shape.

FIG. 6(b) is a sectional view of a cooling apparatus having a circularshape.

DESCRIPTION

As shown in FIG. 1, an article of clothing 11 comprising at least oneopening 12, wherein a cooling apparatus 13 is capable of fitting withinthe opening 12. The cooling apparatus 13 is connected to a power sourceand controller unit 14.

1. Clothing Article

The clothing article 11 will have at least one opening 12 of any shape,as shown in FIG. 2, but preferably that of a rectangle or circle inorder to accommodate the shape of the cooling apparatus 13. While thearticle must have at least one opening 12, it is preferable that thearticle will have a plurality of openings. It is further preferable thatat least one opening is located on the front of the article, one on theback of the article, one on each of the left and right sides of thearticle, as partially shown in FIG. 1.

The opening 12 receives the cooling apparatus 13. The opening 12 has alining 12(a) made of an adhesive, breakaway material, commonly soldunder the trademark “Velcro.” The cooling apparatus 13 has acorresponding lining 13(a) as shown in FIG. 3(a). The Velcro lining12(a) of the opening 12 adheres to the corresponding lining 13(a) on thecooling apparatus 13, as shown in FIG. 3(b), thereby enabling thecooling apparatus 13 to be fitted into the opening 12. In anotherembodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5(a), (b) and (c), the opening 12 has alining 12(b) with attached fasteners 12(c), such as snaps or claspsembedded in the lining 12(b), to which corresponding fasteners 13(c) onthe cooling apparatus 13 fasten, as shown in FIG. 5(c). The coolingapparatus 13 may be removed from the article 11 for cleaning by simplyunfastening the snaps or clasps, or by separating the Velcro linings.

2. Cooling Apparatus

The cooling apparatus 13 is comprised of a miniature electric fan 16(a)encased in a protective cover 16(b), and is capable of fitting in theopening 12 of the article 11.

As it is desired that the cooling apparatus 13 be as small, lightweightand unobtrusive as possible, while still capable of generating maximumfan speed sufficient to achieve the purpose of cooling the wearer, thecooling apparatus 13 should be accordingly compact. Fans that aresuitably compact for use in the present invention are sold commercially.Commercial fans that are best suitable for the present invention havedimensions typically of 60×60×10 mm or 80×80×15 mm, and weighapproximately 75 g. Such fans are powered by small electric motors, witha voltage of about 12V, and capable of generating fan speed upwards of4000 rpm. Because it is desired that the cooling apparatus 13 operate asnoiselessly as possible, commercial fans that would be suitable for usein the present invention should have a noise measurement of not morethan 39 db(A).

The fan 16(a) is encased in a protective cover 16(b), preferably made ofa lightweight plastic or other suitably hard material, taking the formof a grill or mesh screen, which protects the person of the wearer fromthe operation of the fan 16(a). The shape of the cover 16(b) can berectangular or circular. Around the protective cover 16(b), the coolingapparatus 13 has a lining 13(a) that matches the lining 12(a) of theopening on the clothing article 11, and is made of a correspondingmaterial. For example, where the lining 12(a) of the article opening 12is made of Velcro, as shown in FIG. 2(a), the lining 13(a) of thecooling apparatus 13 would also be made of Velcro, as shown in FIG.3(a). Where the lining 12(b) of the opening 12 has fasteners 12(c), asshown in FIG. 5(a), the lining 13(b) of the cooling apparatus 13 willalso have fasteners 13(c), as shown in FIG. 5(b). As indicated above,the cooling apparatus 13 is detachably fitted into the opening 12 of theclothing article 11 by means of the Velcro lining or fasteners, as shownin FIG. 3(b) and FIG. 5(c) respectively.

3. Power Source and Controller

As shown in FIG. 1, the cooling apparatus is connected to a power source14(a) and a controller 14(b). The power source 14(a) is removablyattached to the clothing article 11, so as to enable the convenientremoval of batteries or for the convenience of cleaning. For example,the power source 14(a) and controller 14(b) unit can be enclosed in ahousing, which can be attached to the clothing article 11 by Velcro orfasteners. In this embodiment, the housing includes a first adhesivepatch attached to said clothing article 11, and a second adhesive patchattached to said housing, whereby said first adhesive patch adheres tosaid second adhesive patch. In another embodiment, the power source14(a) and controller 14(b) unit can be contained in a pocket with aclosable flap. The power source 14(a) generates power to the coolingapparatus 13, which can be activated and deactivated by controller14(b).

1. An article of clothing suitable for cooling, comprising: (a) at leastone opening formed therein; (b) a cooling apparatus capable of fittingwithin said opening.
 2. An article of clothing according to claim 1,wherein said opening has a means for receiving said cooling apparatus.3. An article of clothing according to claim 2, wherein said means forreceiving include a lining around said opening made of an adhesive,breakaway material, which is capable of adhering to a correspondinglining on said cooling apparatus.
 4. An article of clothing according toclaim 2, wherein said means for receiving include a lining around saidopening with fasteners attached to said lining, which are capable offastening to corresponding fasteners on said cooling apparatus.
 5. Anarticle of clothing suitable for cooling according to claim 1, furthercomprising: (a) a power source; (b) a controller; (c) means forremovably securing said power source and said controller to saidclothing article for operating said cooling apparatus; (d) means forremovably connecting said power source to said cooling apparatus.
 6. Anarticle of clothing according to claim 5, wherein said means forremovably securing said power source and said controller to saidclothing article include a pocket with a closable flap having a flapfastener, said pocket secured to said clothing article, and in whichsaid power source and said controller are contained.
 7. An article ofclothing according to claim 5, wherein said means for removably securingsaid power source and said controller to said clothing article include afirst adhesive patch attached to said clothing article, and a secondadhesive patch attached to a housing wherein said power source ishoused, whereby said first adhesive patch adheres to said secondadhesive patch.
 8. An article of clothing according to claim 1, whereinsaid cooling apparatus is comprised of: (a) a fan; (b) an encasement forsaid fan; (c) means for detachably securing said cooling apparatuswithin said opening of said clothing article.
 9. An article of clothingaccording to claim 8, wherein said encasement is comprised of a frontand back cover.
 10. An article of clothing according to claim 8, whereinsaid means for detachably securing include a lining attached around saidcooling apparatus made of an adhesive, breakaway material, which iscapable of adhering to a corresponding lining on the clothing article.11. An article of clothing according to claim 8, wherein said means fordetachably securing include a lining attached around said coolingapparatus having attached fasteners, which are capable of fastening tocorresponding fasteners on the clothing article.
 12. An article ofclothing suitable for cooling, comprising: (a) a plurality of coolingapparatuses; (b) a plurality of openings, each of which is capable ofreceiving one of the plurality of cooling apparatuses.
 13. An article ofclothing according to claim 12, wherein each said opening has a meansfor receiving one of the plurality of said cooling apparatuses.
 14. Anarticle of clothing according to claim 13, wherein said means forreceiving include a lining around each said opening made of an adhesive,breakaway material, which is capable of adhering to a correspondinglining on each of said cooling apparatuses.
 15. An article of clothingaccording to claim 13, wherein said means for receiving include a liningaround each said opening with attached fasteners, which are capable offastening to corresponding fasteners on each said cooling apparatuses.16. A method for cooling an article of clothing, comprising: (a) formingat least one opening in said clothing article; (b) fitting a coolingapparatus within said opening.
 17. A method for cooling an article ofclothing according to claim 16, further comprising: (a) removablysecuring a power source to said clothing article; (b) connecting saidpower source to said cooling apparatus for operating said coolingapparatus.